Munson Mills (c1755-1821)
Munson Mills was born in approximately 1755 in the Beaumont Parish District of Essex, England. His birth year has been estimated from his burial record. Despite an extensive search of Essex parish records, a baptism record for Munson is yet to be located. It is not proven at this stage, but it likely that Munson's parents were James and Sarah Mills (nee Munson), who married in Ardleigh, Essex in November 1754. This puts the date right for Munson's birth, and also explains his unusual first name, after his mother's maiden name. No other 'Mills/Munson' marriage has been located at this time, and Ardleigh is close to Dedham, where Munson would raise his own family. It is also not known if Munson had any siblings at this time. Marriage Munson married Jane Wilby at Kirby-le-Soken, Essex on 23rd July 1783. Jane was the daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth Wilby, who had been baptised on 25th November 1759 at Bradfield, Essex, some 5 miles from Beaumont. Her siblings were George (baptised 6.1.1754) and Abraham (baptised 6.11.1758). Witness to the wedding of Munson and Jane were W. Burges and John South. The couple were married by Banns which had been read on 29th June, 6th July and 13th July 1783. Munson signed the marriage record (which meant he could write) and Jane signed with her mark. First child Munson and Jane’s first child, a daughter named Jane is believed to have been born in Beaumont. She was baptised in Great Oakley which is only 3 miles from Beaumont. On later census records, daughter Jane would record her birth place as Great Oakley. Dedham Around the year 1785, not long after the birth of their first child, Munson and Jane decided to move from the Beaumont area of Essex to Dedham, a town that is not far from Ardleigh, where Munson's parents were from. In order to move from Beaumont to Dedham however, the couple required a 'Settlement Certificate' that stated they originated from the parish of Beaumont. This meant that despite living in Dedham, if anything happened to the couple (e.g. poverty), it was the parish of Beaumont that would be responsible for them. Munson and Jane carried such a certificate when they moved from Beaumont to Dedham. They would raise the remainder of their family in the Dedham area. Death Munson died in Dedham and was buried on 16th November 1821 in Langham, Essex (a town that is not far from Dedham). His wife Jane would outlive him by 6 years. Children |- |colspan="3" bgcolor="#FFfce0" style="color: #000000;" |'Children of Munson and Jane Mills' References *Seax Parish registers *Information from Jo Carr, South Australia, AUST *Information from Bernie Barnes, UK *Information from Jo Stevens, AUST *Free REG, (http://freereg.rootsweb.com/cgi/SearchResults.pl?RecordType=Marriages&RecordID=3492150), marriage record for Munson Mills and Jane Willbe, file number 29030 *Index of Settlement Certificates, Essex FHS, Ref 26/13/1 *National Burial Index of England and Wales, burial record for Maison Mills *National Burial Index of England and Wales, burial record for Jane Mills *RootsChat, (http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=9638.10), posting from One Name Study, Munson/Monson, UK, all dates Category:Year of birth uncertain Category:Born in Essex Category:Married in 1793 Category:Married in Kirby-le-Soken Category:Died in Dedham, Essex